HAVEN hosts event on connection between violence and masculinity

The conversation about gun control has been widespread for the past month, since 20 children and six adults were shot to death inside Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn.

Mental health issues have also been at the forefront of the conversation since the Dec. 14 shootings.

While those issues are relevant, HAVEN — a center for the prevention and treatment of domestic violence and sexual assault — believes a third issue is worth looking into in the aftermath of Adam Lanza’s rampage — the way American boys believe they should act as men.

“The way we socialize boys into men in the United States fosters violent masculinity,” according to a statement from HAVEN.“Sixty-one of the last 62 mass shootings in the United States were committed by white men. That’s not a coincidence.”

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In an effort to explore the topic, HAVEN and the National Organization for Men Against Sexism will host a free screening of the film “The Bro Code” at 4 p.m. Saturday, along with a panel discussion featuring lawyers and academics. The event will be held at 30400 Telegraph Road, Suite 151, in Bingham Farms.

The movie is “very graphic” and about an hour long, Cristy Cardinal, director of prevention education at HAVEN, stated in a press release. Those under 18 years of age will not be allowed to view the movie but are still welcome to attend.

“This is a critically important time to talk about masculinity.

“While most men aren’t violent, most violence is perpetrated by men, whether the victims are men or women. We have to acknowledge and talk about the ways that traditional, hegemonic masculinity is harming our communities and, in reality, killing us.”

During a Tuesday afternoon interview, Cardinal expanded on the topic.

“The idea that there’s a particular way to be a man that is pretty narrowly defined, and it is about this sort of hyper-violent posturing tough guy behavior,” she said.

“(NOMAS tries) to address the fact that if most of the violence in this country is perpetrated by men, they should try to fix that.”

“The Bro Code” is a film by researcher and academic Thomas Keith which “examines how this seemingly ironic mentality reinforces misogyny and gender violence in the real world.

“Whether he’s looking at movies and music videos that glamorize womanizing, pornography that trades in the brutalization of women, comedians who make fun of sexual assault, or the recent groundswell in men’s magazines and cable TV shows that revel in reactionary myths of American manhood, the message Keith uncovers in virtually every corner of our ‘entertainment’ culture is clear: That it’s not only normal — but cool — for boys and men to control and humiliate women,” the release states.

Cardinal said there are other factors in play, including location.

“They play the same video games in Europe, and they’re not shooting up schools,” Cardinal said.“What is it that we’re doing, and how can we do it differently? I don’t think doing things differently is a monumental effort.”

The film “challenges young people to fight back against the resurgent idea that being a ‘bro’ — and a man — means glorifying sexism, bullying and abuse.”

Contact Dave Phillips at 248-745-4631 or dave.phillips@oakpress.com. Follow him on Twitter @dave_phillips1